Mark McGrath On 'Hollywood Squares'

Fans channel surfing this week might have discovered Sugar Ray 's Mark McGrath hanging out with pop acts 98 Degrees, Jessica Simpson, Vitamin C, Hoku, and 'N Sync 's Chris Kirkpatrick on TV's Hollywood Squares . He's there all week playing for X's and O's along with actress Rachael Leigh Cook and keeper of the center square Whoopi Goldberg .

McGrath jokes that being on a game show means he's sold out, but that such an appearance has its benefits.

[We did Hollywood Squares -- full sell-out thing to do, you know what I mean? But it's something my mom can relate to. I mean, we do all these things, she doesn't give a s**t, and then she hears we're gonna be on Hollywood Squares and she freaks out, you know? So it was just a fun thing. We went down there, did it for a week, met Whoopi, hung out, got a Miles Davis collection CD from her as a going-away gift, so it was well worth it.]

The shows were taped earlier this summer. Celebrity winnings will benefit SHINE (Seeking Harmony In Neighborhoods Everyday), a nonprofit organization that uses the arts and technology to engage and empower young people to make a difference in their communities.

McGrath has been busy in recent weeks. He and the rest of Sugar Ray appear on the Loud Rocks rock-rap compilation with hip-hop outfit the Alkaholiks. The collection was released September 5th. The singer has also contributed vocals to "Strait Up," a tribute album to deceased Snot singer Lynn Strait . That album arrives November 7.

Meanwhile, Sugar Ray is spending time in a Los Angeles studio working on the follow-up to its 1999 smash "14:59."